Designers Discuss Potential Plans for Adding New Staff

Article
Sep 9, 2013

"We are planning to add staff. I wish we knew how to find the best people. Presently we are trying ad boards and craigslist. Their advantage is that we can give candidates questions to answer to screen them.”

Paul McAlary, president

Main Line Kitchen Design

Narberth, PA

"Our market is currently growing very slowly, so we will hold with our current staff. We truly research references and rely a lot upon what past clients say and think, but hiring great designers and great staff is a combination of luck and skill. Unfortunately there are many great designers who can design well but cannot put a project together through to accounting completion. We are also in a market that has a lot of interior design schools that are putting out students who have false expectations for entry-level positions and pay.”

Lynne Hawthorne, president/owner

Contract Design Group, Inc.

Indian Shores, FL

"We are not planning to add any staff in the next six months. However, we believe the key to finding good salespeople is to find people who are truly interested in the products and who truly believe in the products they sell, as well as people who can relate to the end user with personal experience.”

Stacey Orkin, partner/mgr./sales

Atlantic Bath & Brass, LLC

Rockville, MD

"We are not adding any staff members within the next six months, however, we plan to maximize our staff according to their strengths and utilize training to reach our goals.”

Dawn M. Waksmacki-Maggio

CGC, ID, GAC

Broward Custom Kitchens, Inc.

Pompano Beach, FL

"We are getting so busy we can’t handle the workload with our current staff. The key is finding someone who works well with the team but also brings a fresh take on design. We are looking at using independent contract designers and architects in the future to work as needed so we can keep our overhead in check. We will also be looking at bringing on commissioned salespeople, but that will be down the road.”

Tiare Noelani Pinto,

Allied ASID, CKD, CGP, president

Archipelago Hawaii

Kailua, HI

"We will not be adding any staff members in the next six months because we just added another installer and a project manager. The key to finding a good salesperson is to find somebody who has a good mixture of sales skills and design ability. In my experience, it has been much harder to teach somebody to sell than it is to bring in somebody with strong sales skills and teach them how to design. For installers, you have to find somebody with the skills needed to do the job but also be professional in the customer’s home. Each person in any position must have the same view on customer service that we hold our company to.”

Brad Merritt, owner/member

Kitchens By Woody’s

Barboursville, WV

"We have recently expanded our operations to add another showroom. Because of the strategic planning and positioning, we do plan to hire at least two new designers in the near future. As for the right candidate, those who we’ve interviewed tend to be afraid of the high level at which we work and while they aspire to it, they quickly learn there is a big disconnect between what they know and what they need to know. It’s a difficult process. The rest of the staff is invaluable. They all treat this business as if it were their own.”

Kathy Cvetkovich, sr. designer/owner

Willowbrook Design, LLC

Venetia/Sewickley, PA

"We just added a designer. We have been extremely busy and want to train and develop someone to be a design assistant first, and then train them to design. I interviewed many people and hired the one who had a ‘passion’ for design and who I felt would be a good people person.”

Cynthia M. Dufour, k/b manager

S.W. Collins. Co

Caribou, ME

"We are expanding with another 4,000-sq.-ft. showroom so we do plan to add staff members. They have to be experienced, well versed in 20/20 and be able to deal with a fast-paced environment.”

Eliza Marton, k/b designer

C&R Building Supply

Philadelphia, PA

"Right now we are maintaining a good turnaround with the staff we have now. I think it’s important to find staff who love what they do. Most importantly, you have to appreciate each one for his or her abilities, and tell them…it makes a difference.”